A Misplaced Beauty in Jarl Balgruuf's Court
by Red Swarm
Summary: Lydia Baldwin loved the video game Skyrim. She never dreamed she would visit the place. Wait this couldn't be real could it? *On temporary hiatus while I work on my other stories. I will get back to this I promise*
1. Chapter 1: The calm before the storm

Disclaimer: I do not own Skyrim. It belongs to Bethesda Studios. I am just playing on their stage.

Modern Day/Somewhere over Georgia

Lydia Baldwin relaxed back into her airline seat. It was her first time flying first class. But she supposed she could get used to this, now that she was becoming famous in her own right.

That very morning she had stood in front of television cameras, discussing her victory, in a reality television wilderness survival show. She attributed her success to the late Earl Baldwin, an award-winning wildlife photographer. He adopted her as an infant, after being abandoned in a public restroom. He had always assured her she was the best thing in his life.

The two of them spent years trekking in the wilderness, photographing animals in their natural habitat. Earl Baldwin taught her survival skills. He also kept her balanced, by encouraging her personal interest in archery and martial arts. But, mostly he had loved her unconditionally. She missed the old man dearly.

A soft cough distracted Lydia from her musing. Sprawled on the seat next to her was her sword and fencing instructor Alistair Kent. He was striking with the well-defined muscles of someone who spent hours hefting huge swords. He was a disciplined but hard taskmaster who encouraged her to be her best.

Alistair liked to spend time attending medieval fairs and cultural events. He was an avid collector of antique weapons and armor. Lydia secretly believed he would have made a great medieval knight. In fact, his wife often joked he was born in the wrong time period.

Lydia knew this because his wife her best friend Grace, was sitting opposite Alistair smirking at her. She was never concerned about Lydia eyeballing her man. Women drooling over him didn't bother her.

Grace and Lydia grew up together. They were polar opposites who managed to become lifetime friends.

Lydia's best feature was her expressive brown eyes. She favored French manicures, and casual clothes. Her dark hair fell in unruly waves and she rarely wore make-up.

Her main concession to a beauty routine, was to bleach her freckles with lemon juice during the summer. However, physical fitness was her passion. The overall impression she gave, was an outdoors type who cleaned up well when she wanted to.

On the other hand, Grace was a classical beauty who lived up to her name. She carried her petite curvy body with confidence. She favored designer clothes, and followed the latest hair and nail trends.

Lydia often teased her about constantly changing her hair color. Somehow she managed to pull it off. She came across as poised, elegant and groomed to perfection.

Lydia abruptly noticed a strange tension coming from both Grace and Alistair. He seemed nervous and on edge. Grace smiled encouragingly at him. Lydia couldn't hide her curiosity "What's up guys?". Alistair began to speak, but Grace cut him off "Please be open-minded". Lydia glanced back and forth between the couple wondering why they suddenly seemed guarded.

Alistair spent a few minuets gathering his thoughts. Finally, he spoke quietly "In 1485 a knight in the service of Richard Plantagenet received a vision from Ellyn the wise. The most powerful witch of his time. He learned his branch of the family would to die with him at the Battle of Bosworth Field. But, the witch offered him a pact which would change his future."

Lydia couldn't hide her confusion "A witch? A pact?". Alistair captured and held her gaze before continuing " If he returned a magical amulet to it's true owner, he would find love and be granted heirs. The knight accepted since the promised reward was immeasurable. But, he hadn't yet learned, that cheating fate would enact its own price. Even Ellyn had no idea his true love didn't exist in that time and place. So he sacrificed his honor, and betrayed his king in those dealings with the witch".

Lydia didn't know what to think "Where is all this coming from?". Alistair's eyes became intense "What if I told you time travel is real? I swear on my honor as Alistair the brave. It happened, I lived it. I'm trying to share my past with you." Lydia sputtered. "How much have you had to drink Al?" she began cautiously. His answer was to rummage in his pocket, withdrawing a leather thong necklace with an ice blue pendant. It was exquisitely carved with strange runes.

In spite of herself, Lydia reached for it. But, he held it away. "You have to accept it before you touch it. First of all ,allow me to explain what you're getting into. When Ellyn the witch cast a seeker spell on this amulet, she promised a path to my true love. None of us expected I would travel through time itself to find Grace. My personal code of honor compels me to complete my promise to offer this amulet to it's owner."

He turned the stone over to show what looked like a stylized letter Z curved into the back. It was familiar to Lydia. She laughed "Grace knew about my birthmark . Why haven't you mentioned this before?" Alistair closed his eyes as if he was in pain "This has haunted me for years. When I saw you in a swimsuit yesterday I recognized your birthmark right away. All this time the person I was seeking was right under my nose".

Lydia believed her friends were trying to prank her. The pendant was likely custom-made. This was an elaborate joke even for these two. She decided to go along with it" Tell me more." She put on her best poker face.

Alistair explained he didn't know the consequences if she accepted the necklace. He hoped she would refuse it and give him a loophole to destroy it. Lydia knew the couple would tease her forever about this. But, there was something compelling about the stone. She held out her hand "It's mine right? Let me have it".

His face fell "I'm begging you let me keep it!". Her opinion of his acting skills raised a notch. She wiggled her eyebrows "Hand it over". His eyes were expressing a range of emotions from panic to resignation. He hesitated before passing it to her. All he said was "You have been warned". Lydia sighed dramatically "you're such a drama king".

The pendant felt warm to the touch. Up close it reminded her of turquoise. But it was actually clear with lots of little ice blue runes pulsing inside. She had never seen anything like it.

**Authors Note**: I have several pairing in mind for this story. But they are not set in stone at at this time. I am working on editing posting several stories at once. Please feel free to review or leave feedback. I would love to know what people think of my stories. The inspiration for this story is a real life dream about Skyrim. It got me thinking that would be a great plot for a fan fiction.


	2. Chapter 2: Disbelief

Lydia never could recall exactly what had happened next. Faint disembodied voices were calling her name. One minute she felt light-headed, and the next she could smell manure in the air.

She could hear the distinct sounds of a stable, horses blowing and moving around. The jingle of tack, soft nickers. Gradually she became aware she was sitting on something prickly like straw. She felt chilly air brush over her and opened her eyes. First she noticed gray cloudy skies.

She was wedged between wooden barrels in an open stall. A small incline gave way to a cobblestone road. A horse hitched to a wagon sat on the side of the roadway. Stone fences and structures which reminded her of gazebos dotted the landscape.

In the distance she could make out a round tower against a backdrop of a mountain range. This place seemed vaguely familiar. She felt something slide off her leg. The amulet lay in the straw next to her purse.

Lydia hesitated slightly before picking up the necklace. There was something different about it. She looked closer. It was no longer pulsing. Once again it was an ice blue carved stone.

Feeling dizzy and disoriented, it didn't occur to her to question her surroundings. It was almost like waking up from anesthesia. Lydia closed her eyes content to stay where she was.

As she began to doze off footsteps alerted her that someone was coming. A middle-aged man carrying a burlap sack walked around the corner.

His outfit consisted of a badly stained white peasant style shirt covered by a faded green thigh length vest . His hide boots reminded her of moccasins.

He stopped abruptly as surprised to see her as she was him. When he spoke she could barely understand his heavily accented words "The Bannared Mare rents rooms for sleeping lass. Or were you looking to buy a horse? I have the finest steeds in all of Skyrim".

Lydia felt the fog lifting from her brain. She blinked several times. Even then she didn't believe her eyes. This could only be Whiterun stables. She had played enough Skyrim to recognize the place.

Her brain began to seek a logical way to explain all of this. Since Skyrim was a fictional place, this was a dream. It felt so real. This was awesome! Why not enjoy it? She stood quickly breathing in air so fresh it made her head ring. She took one step forward and almost tripped over the carry on bag sitting near her feet. The man who appeared nordish dropped his burlap sack and quickly steadied her. He reached down and handed her the luggage before clearing his throat "Lass?'.

Lydia shook her head and brushed pass him. It felt so surreal to be in Skyrim! The cobblestones under her feet were crisp and icy. White plumes of breath escaped her mouth, as she walked towards the drawbridge. Familiar banners flapping in the breeze, greeted her arrival at the wide open gates. The single guard on duty waved her through "The gates close at dust lass".

Lydia paused taking in her first view of Whiterun. There were people milling about. A few guards were talking loudly among themselves. Smells of peat, wood smoke and baking bread mingled heavily in the air. Young children chased one another in a game of tag. Their voices rose daring a blonde girl to catch them. A childish giggle caught her attention. She turned fascinated by what she was seeing.

A woman was goofing about playing with a dark-haired toddler who was laughing at her antics. The child rode on the shoulders of a man who could only be Ulfberth War-Bear.

Except for being a tad younger, he was exactly as depicted in-game, same dark hair, same intense eyes. The main difference was his clothes. This nord wore a sleeveless white tunic belted at the waist, and dark pants stuffed into knee high cross gartered boots. Instead of steel gauntlets, he wore heavy gold armbands. She had noticed only the guards were wearing armor.

Lydias eyes drifted to the woman. Was that Adrianne Avenicci? This girl looked young enough to be a teenager. Her long brown hair caught up in a fat braid,fell past her butt. Her muscular arms strained the fabric of her rust colored dress. Maybe from welding blacksmith hammers? The couple must have felt her staring, because they both turned to her. Adrianne's face was questioning. Ulfberth's seemed wary and hard to read.

He took two steps towards her "Are you here for the regimentals lass?" he asked watching her dubiously. "We offer fine armor if you have the coin". Lydia wanted to keep a low profile. She shook her head and moved to walk on. Adrianne spoke up "Give us a chance. I may not be Eourland Graymane, but I have fine steel fit for the Jarl himself".


End file.
